PBA top rookie Stanley Pringle is ready for the big show

Globalport’s top rookie Stanley Pringle scored 24 points against Talk ‘N Text during a preseason game. His performance was…in a word…beguiling. It’s a strong word, I know. But for a rookie to do that against Talk ‘N Text, scoring on an array of pull-up jumpers and shifty moves to the basket, he deserves the acclaim. The acclaim, however, comes with a caveat. I know, Talk ‘N Text knows and, most importantly, Pringle knows that it was just a preseason game. Don’t get too excited. Oo nga naman. So let’s just wait for Pringle to get accustomed to the PBA first. Eventually we’ll know if the number one overall pick can recreate 20-point performances on a nightly basis. I suspect Pringle won’t make us wait too long.

MH: What’s it like entering the league as a number one draft pick?

SP: It’s great. From the draft, being in the venue and getting your name called. It’s a great feeling. It’s something I’ll always remember.

MH: Do you find it unnerving that there are people who expect you to dominate in your first year in the PBA?

SP: Not at all because expectation is something I can’t control. For all the things I can’t control, I try not to put any thought into it. I won’t worry about it all because I can’t control it all. Things I can control is what I do, to be a better player, be a better person. Anything else that I can’t control, I can’t worry about it.

MH: Letting go of things that you can’t control and focusing on things that you can control, where did you get that mindset?

SP: I would probably say I learned it from my experiences in life. My family is also a big part of it, my mother and my father and the great family support.

MH: What was the best part about playing in the Asean Basketball League?

SP: Well, first of all, Indonesia was, by far, a great team. I got to experience the lifestyle in Indonesia in Jakarta and I got to go to Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia. You know that everybody’s different but you also have similarities as well.

MH: How are you adjusting to life in Manila, dealing with the weather and the traffic and the atmosphere?

SP: The thing I like most is that I have a lot of family members here. I’m hanging out with them more and getting to know them more. My mom came out here two weeks after I arrived and she’s from Cagayan and she has many relatives here so I was meeting people that she grew up and she was just so happy.

MH: People’s comparisons are also something you can’t control. You’ve been often compared to Talk ‘N Text’s Jayson Castro but I know someone who has been following you closely and he says you’re a combination of Jayson Castro and Terrence Romeo.

SP: I’m just trying to focus on improving my craft. Terrence Romeo, man, playing with him since I got here, he’s definitely impressed me with his moves and his drive to be better and putting in the actual work everyday. He actually made me work a little harder and stay in practice longer to get some more shots. And Alex (Cabagnot) he works just as hard as anybody and he’s a veteran of the game. I got a great group of teammates, man.

MH: How is your relationship and connection with Coach Pido Jarencio?

SP: He’s a great guy. He’s making sure all the players are okay, making sure that we’re working hard. Any time he can draw up a play and he can catch the defense off-guard. His style is different but with our guards – me, Alex and Terrence – we can create and a lot of his system is about us creating. I’ve always wanted to play for a coach who bases his system around players. This will be a really exciting season.

MH: Have you seen your coach’s funny side? Because he has a funny side and he has a fiery side. Have you seen the whole spectrum?

SP: Maybe not the whole spectrum but he’s really funny, man. He’s hilarious.

MH: I saw your game against Talk ‘N Text, the one you played out of town. Your performance was impressive. Is that a sign of things to come or should people not read too much into that because it was just a preseason game?

SP: People can just look at it for what it is. It’s just a preseason game. It’s much different from a regular season game.

MH: Knowing that everyone’s preparing to face you, knowing that the top teams will be going after you on the court, does that make you anxious, maybe even a bit jittery?

SP: That’s part of their job, to see how they can defend players from the other team. That’s part of the game. After playing in some preseason games, I am more aware now of how teams will try to stop me.

MH: You appear to have veteran composure that you seldom see in first-time PBA players. Is that kind of composure something you’ve always had?

SP: I was always taught in high school that it’s okay to be nervous before a game but once the lights are on and the ball is tipped and you’re still nervous, that means you’re scared. I was always taught that it’s okay to be nervous but once the ball is tipped, you got to go hard. All that nervousness should be out of there.

MH: Since you’ve played in the preseason, what has been the most striking part of playing the style of basketball in the PBA?

SP: It’s hard-nosed. It’s real physical. You can see the deep passion in everybody.

MH: When people see a player with a beard, it definitely adds style and personality. Is there any special story behind the beard?

SP: My friends influenced me. A lot of my friends back home have the same beard. Some people might say, “Oh, you must idolize James Harden”. He’s a great player but he’s not my idol. I started growing it out two years ago and it was my barber who helped me start it. He always told me it’s just hair so if it bothers me, he could always cut it.

MH: But you see to be fine running up and down the court with a beard.

SP: Yeah, yeah, it’s cool. I had so many hairstyles growing up, playing basketball. I used to have braids. I even had dreadlocks in college.

MH: You know what, the beard works. I think you should keep it. It’s a trademark and it will help people remember you easily. So if you don’t admire James Harden as much, who are the players that you really admire?

SP: Growing up, I was a Michael Jordan fan like everybody else. Allen Iverson too was definitely one of my favorite players growing up so I would always try to steal his moves when I was growing up.

MH: What drives you to succeed and what drives you to try and succeed in the PBA?

SP: My family. My family makes me give my all in whatever we do, to try be better, to try to be a better person. That’s the way I was raised by my mother and father.